The Deputy Registrar will assist the Registrar of the Court and replace him when necessary. The Registrar is the Registry’s senior official. Under the authority of the President of the Court, he/she has overall responsibility for both the administrative and the judicial activities of the Registry, which comprises a workforce of 650.

The Deputy Registrar will assist the Registrar in key areas of judicial and administrative management of the Court and its Registry:

- provides leadership and direction to staff by maintaining a harmonious and efficient working environment within the Registry so as to ensure that the Registry provides effective assistance to the Court; sets annual objectives and assesses the performance of senior Registry officials;

- together with the Registrar, oversees the case-processing activities of the Registry;

- in consultation with the Registrar, determines the overall staff and budgetary policy; takes decisions on staff and budgetary matters;

- maintains contacts and co-operates with senior management in other parts of the Council of Europe;
- ensures the effective implementation of the Court’s communications policy, in accordance with the instructions of the Court, notably in relation to the media, the general and specialised public and other international and national courts;

- advises the Court on practice and procedure;

- represents the Registry and, on the instructions of the President, the Court.

Please note that the incumbent may be required to perform other duties not listed in the vacancy notice.

Essential Criteria

Only candidates who fulfill the following criteria will be considered eligible for shortlisting:

·     Qualifications: university degree in law. 

·      Experience:

-        thorough knowledge of the procedure, practice and case law of the European Convention on Human Rights;

-        experience of administration and management at a senior level. 

·      Language requirements: very good knowledge of both official languages (English and French). 

·      Nationality: nationality of one of the 47 Council of Europe member states. 

·        Age: under 65 years of age, at the closing date of the vacancy notice. 

Desirable Criteria

The following criteria are considered preferable and will be taken into account in the shortlisting process:

·      Knowledge and Experience: Experience acquired in an international environment. 

·      Language: Knowledge of other European languages. 

The following competencies have been identified as important for the role:  

·        Vision on international affairs: strategic insight; awareness of the international judicial and political context; organisation awareness.

·        Managerial skills: leadership; management of multi-layer teams as well as of projects covering different functional areas and fields of expertise; proven capacity to influence and exert authority.

·        Professional and technical skills:

-        conceptual thinking at a strategic level;

-        sound planning, problem-solving and judgement skills.

·        Interpersonal skills: relationship-building, networking and negotiating at a high judicial, political and diplomatic level.

·        Communication skills: good listening and presentation skills in different languages; ability to draft clearly, concisely and convincingly in English or French.

·        Personal attitudes: initiative and responsibility, result orientation and sense for continuous improvement, organisational alignment.

·        Personal values: adherence to Council of Europe values, integrity, loyalty, commitment and conscience, respect for diversity, discretion and independence; commitment to the independence of the Court and its Registry.

For more information, please refer to the competency inventory of the Council of Europe. 

Applications must be made in English or French using the Council of Europe on-line application system. By connecting to our website http://www.coe-recruitment.com you can create and submit your on-line application. Applications must be submitted at the latest 18 September 2015 (midnight Central European Time).

Appointment

 Under Rule 16 of the Rules of the Court, the Deputy Registrar is elected by the plenary Court for a term of five years and may be re-elected. He/she is appointed by the Secretary General of the Council of Europe in accordance with Article 26 of the Regulations on Appointments.

Additional Information

The selection procedure consists of interviews of shortlisted candidates with a selection committee comprised of Judges, followed by an election by the plenary Court.

In accordance with the Staff Regulations of the Council of Europe, staff shall retire on reaching the age of 65.

Further details on conditions of employment including salaries, allowances, pension scheme and social insurance can be consulted on our recruitment website.

Under its equal opportunities policy, the Council of Europe is aiming to achieve parity in the number of women and men employed in each category and grade.

The Council of Europe welcomes applications from all suitably qualified candidates, irrespective of gender, disability, marital or parental status, racial, ethnic or social origin, colour, religion, belief or sexual orientation.

During the different stages of the recruitment procedure, specific measures may be taken to ensure equal opportunities for candidates with disabilities.

The Organisation 

The Council of Europe is the continent’s leading organisation in the protection of human rights, democracy and rule of law. It was founded in 1949 in order to promote greater unity between its members  and  now includes 47 member states, all having signed up to the European Convention on Human Rights.

By Statute, the Council of Europe has two constituent organs: the Committee of Ministers, composed of the member States’ Ministers for Foreign Affairs, and the Parliamentary Assembly, comprising delegations from the national parliaments. The Congress of Local and Regional Authorities of Europe represents the entities of local and regional self-government within the member States. The Commissioner for Human Rights is an independent and impartial institution within the Council of Europe mandated to promote the awareness of and respect for human rights in member states.

The European Court of Human Rights is the judicial body which oversees the implementation of the Convention in the member states. Individuals can bring complaints of human rights violations to the Strasbourg Court once all possibilities of appeal have been exhausted in the member state concerned.